Why "Monk" Stunk

Watching the recent episode of HBO’s Girls in which OCD was so effectively portrayed reminded me of my disdain for Monk, the Tony Shalhoub mystery/comedy series that ran on USA from 2002-2009.

Monk’s gimmick – and it would be incredibly generous to call it anything more than a gimmick – is that Tony Shalhoub’s titular “defective detective” suffers from severe OCD. Hilariously inconvenient, painfully superficial, improbably untreatable OCD, which always involves counting and cleaning (because those are Hollywood’s very favorite OCD symptoms), and which can’t be managed, or even explained accurately to exasperated bystanders, because then there couldn’t be a show.

I’ve read interviews with the show’s creator, Andy Breckman, in which he claims to understand and even to have suffered from OCD-like compulsions. But he doesn’t seem to have any idea what he’s talking about, because his references for OCD appear to be drawn exclusively from television and film, where OCD symptoms are generally depicted as neatness, fastidiousness, and being Felix from The Odd Couple, and not as a spiral of madness or soul-crushing existential dread. I have no problem with jokes about OCD, but I do have a problem with entertainment that permits audiences to laugh at the disorder without showing them the terror and despair and shame and self-loathing that many OCD sufferers endure.

And it’s a shame, because when the show isn’t depicting Monk with scorn and derision, Shalhoub’s performance is convincing and compassionate. At the beginning of the episode I analyze here, the Emmy-nominated “Mr. Monk Takes His Medicine,” Monk has an exchange with his therapist that eloquently captures the frustration and exhaustion of chronic Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder:

“This is not the life I wanted. It’s unbearable. You know, I envy everybody. Strangers, people on the street."

"Maybe they envy you. You’re an extraordinary man."

"Yeah, I don’t want to be an extraordinary man. I want to be the guy on the bus, coming home at five o’clock, helping his kids with their homework… I’m just so tired. I’m so tired of being me... Look at me! I’m helpless. I’m pathetic. I’m not even a man, I’m a broken machine.”

Exchanges like this demonstrate how Monk might have offered an effective and affecting portrayal of OCD. But, sadly, “Mr. Monk Takes His Medicine” is probably the worst portrayal of mental disability and psychiatric treatment I’ve ever seen, in any form of media. After all, when Hannibal Lecter tears into a plate of delicious brainhors d'oeuvres, or Fight Club’s narrator shoots himself to exorcize his troublemaking alternate personality, it isn’t sold as a realistic depiction of mental disability. “Mr. Monk Takes His Medicine” adopts a veneer of respectability that makes its fantastic suggestions (drugs are magic, and medicine is a vice) especially irresponsible and dangerous.

Here’s what happens in the episode, and why, in my opinion, it’s so horrifyingly misguided:

1) Monk’s therapist bullies him into trying of a new type of OCD medication. Already we run into problems. If the therapist is a psychologist, without psychiatric credentials, then how is he prescribing medication? And if this guy is a psychiatrist, then why hasn’t he offered Monk medication before? Why is Monk paying more to see a specialist in a form of treatment he says he’s opposed to? Moments like this expose how superficial and poorly thought-out the Monk’s depiction of psychiatric treatment really is.

2) While debating whether or not to take the meds, Monk has a conversation with his deceased wife. I understand that this is a recurring device on the show; it’s trying for the “is it his imagination? or is she a ghoOOost?” trope, which is hackneyed at best, and flat-out does not work in a story that engages with mental disability.

On another show, we might take these conversations metaphorically, but when the protagonist has been diagnosed with a mental illness and is seeing a therapist, it’s impossible not to conclude he’s actually hallucinating (especially because, later, he stops seeing his wife while taking the medication). Monk’s hallucinations are an embarrassing narrative shortcut that hopelessly muddles the show’s portrayal of OCD. They are symptomatic of the episode’s half-baked approach to mental illness – choosing narrative convenience and cheap sentiment over accuracy.

3) Monk eventually chooses to take the medication, and it cures his disorder instantly. He no longer has OCD symptoms. (The show doesn’t name the medication Monk takes, but if anyone has the screenwriters’ contact information please put me in touch, because I’d like to fire my psychiatrist and hire them instead.)

Sadly, use of the medication comes as a terrible price – because of course it does, because this wouldn’t be a series finale if it didn’t. Monk’s medication totally changes his personality – nuMonk is abrasive, egocentric and oblivious to social cues. He becomes increasingly uninhibited and eventually, in a grotesque bit of intended comedy, degenerates into a Hawaiian shirt-wearing eighties cop stereotype who calls himself “the Monk.”

Basically, Monk on meds acts like he’s drunk. This is a lazy, disingenuous portrayal of the impact of psychiatric medication. It has no resemblance whatsoever to any kind of medication I’ve taken, or the role that medication plays in OCD therapy (where it’s often used to alleviate symptoms, and make necessary cognitive-behavioral work a little easier). The episode portrays medicine as an indulgence, a way to hide from your problems instead of confronting them, especially because…

4) “The Monk” loses his crimefighting superpowers when he’s on medication. He’s totally useless at a crime scene: blurting out obvious statements, harassing passersby, picking up and fiddling with stuff. Incidentally, he’s also happy: “I’m happy for the first time in years – I love ‘the Monk’.”

The message seems clear. Even with a diagnosed mental illness, taking prescription medication is the same as popping pills or binge-drinking: it might make you feel a little better but you’ll embarrass yourself, you’ll disappoint your friends, you’ll lose what makes you unique and valuable as a person. Your only choice is to endure your symptoms, because they are inextricably intertwined with your gifts – you should be grateful for them.

5) Monk’s friends and coworkers, deducing they know more about Monk’s condition than Monk or his therapist, snatch the pills away from him and play keepaway. At the end of the episode, his nurse grabs the pills and tosses them into a dumpster. (Note: It’s best to solicit the advice of the treating psychiatric professional before making any modifications in medication protocol.)

6) In the Monk world, medication is an all-or-nothing proposition. Even if we accept Monk’s reaction to the meds, no one suggests a different prescription. There’s no talk of reducing his dose, or trying another drug.

That’s “Mr. Monk Takes His Medicine” – as far as I’m concerned, the nadir of a program that was already selling viewers a lazy, superficial and condescending portrayal of the illness that almost killed me. I remember a friend congratulated me in 2009, at the end of Monk’s final season, for outliving the show. I can’t say I was sorry to see it go. To quote Shaloub in a much better work, the 1999 Star Trek spoof Galaxy Quest – Monk “was a hell of a thing.” And not in a good way.

Hi,
I know it can be frustrating for people who suffer with ocd to accept that different people perceive it and aree affected in different ways by it.
The thing about monk is that he gives people who dont have ocd a good impression of the illness as he makes it appear funny. Now many people who mention they have ocd will be able to related to monk s funny and likeble character instead of an person stuck in a health care institution and stigmatised by society.
I know you probably fell strongly about this but so do many other people including andy brackman who is a verry talented writer.

Actualy many people with ocd like order and cleaning. Just because they work at holyhood doesnt mean they are ignorant to mental health. I dont think this upsets anyone with ocd quite the opposite might make them feel better about themself. People who have ocd are more upset about there problems than monk. People who have time to critisize the show online personaly i dont think have that many problems. I have many friends with ocd and they are so unwell that they are in hospital they dont have time to watch monk nevermind critisising it. And if they saw the show i a, sure i would be an inspiration for them more than anything.

I said they were inaccurate not completely wrong. I have lived and suffered with OCD since childhood. Not everyone with OCD has to be hospitalized. I'm telling you from my own experience that they are presenting an unbalanced view of what it's like to live with OCD. OCD is SO much more than how the media presents it.

I also have been diagnosed with ocd i totaly understand what u saying but its a funny tv show amd its not harmful it is trying to reduce stingma to to educate people on ocd. At the end of the day its not perfect but its funny and people with ocd can be associated with this funny detective who clever and clean. To be honest with u its beter than if he had ocd like it realy is th show would be verry sad and disturbing and would upset people even more.

The stereotypes portrayed in the media regarding mental illness only serve to make ordinary people more callous towards them. I suffer from depression and many shows portray sufferers as pathetic and weak, that all it takes is to 'suck it up.' I'm not sure how exactly people could develop a better understanding of these conditions. Learning about them helps, but in the long run, I don't think that anyone who hasn't struggled with them can know just how awful it is to be out of control of one's behavior or emotions. I can imagine that there are times when an OCD sufferer would give just about anything to have some peace from their compulsion, just as I would to be able to feel good during my bad months. My heart goes out to all of you who suffer, because I know how it is to suffer from that which one cannot control.

I am going off memory but I think my memory is pretty good. Monk is never depicted as defeating his OCD. The show does not depict ERP therapy and Monk slowly working up his "fear thermometer" or other such treatment plan. Instead in the last episode when he (or the Police?) (for those who care spoiler alert) kill his wife's killer his OCD just magically leaves him.

This creates the impression that we OCD sufferers have some sort of trauma in our past that caused our OCD and if only we could confront the Secret Demon of our Past in a climatic showdown our OCD will just magically leave us forever. At least in my experience, it does not work like that.

I have seen two major depictions of OCD in media. One was in O.S. Card's Xenocide and the other was Monk. In neither did an OCD sufferer actually take down their disease. In Card's novel OCD wins. And in Monk it offers a fake, unrealistic solution.

Oh PLEASE.
This is called satire. I suffer from extraordinary OCD myself, recently spending several months in a hospital working on it. Sometimes it helps to laugh. On the serious side of the show, I can't count how many times it made me cry because I know that deep sadness, fear, and loneliness. It is horrible living your life with a deep need to be "normal" and he did a beautiful job portraying that. It was touching and exposed the public to the fact that OCD isn't all about being a neat freak. Through out the show he should obsessions with wife, germs, phobias, intrusive thoughts, ect. He also expose more than just a cleaning compulsion having to touch things, unable to change, organizing, and so on. The show also showed some of the beauty that OCD gives us, "gift and the curse" his OCD is what made him the fantastic detective that he was. Opening the world to start to understand that some of the finest professionals of the world may suffer from OCD. As far as the episode where he takes the medication. Once again satire. I laughed and laughed. Being someone who has taking these meds in the hopes of feeling a little less fearful and just a little normal, I know the side effects I went through. Yes satire is over the top in the show but not crazy off of what some of these meds can do to some people. Do you know what it's like to go through this crap really? My side effects have ranged from weight gain of 30 pounds in three months, sleeping all the time, numbness, not being able to show necessary sadness at a funeral for loved ones, sexual dysfunction, horrible headaches, gum disease, one of the meds made me cry every time I laughed, and YES impulsive behavior, if I don't take these things with a grain of salt I might give up on getting better. I have know choice but to laugh at them.
"Through humor, you can soften some of the worst blows that life delivers. And once you find laughter, no matter how painful your situation might be, you can survive it."
-Bill Cosby

If "Monk" flopped in its authenticity, it soared in its value and entertainment. People didn't tune in to learn how to overcome OCD; they watched it for Monk's struggle for normalcy (Hollywood-style) and for its clever plots, hilarious dialogue, and preposterous heroes. (No, Adrian wasn't the only one.) It probably gave anyone who secretly suffers from OCD permission to feel what he really feels without fear of being the "only one." And for you professionals, it's OK to like "Monk" without losing any clinical credentials. If they're preventing you from enjoying something like "Monk," that just shows that they're a blessing...and a curse.

See "Whitechapel", a contemporary police/detective series from UK, shown on PBS. The lead character struggles with an OCD-like affliction. Not played for humor or ridicule....I find it very realistic. I disliked Monk from the moment I first saw it.

Old comment but I just wanted to agree with this. The symptoms portrayed in Whitechapel were quite stereotypical (counting/hand washing) but the show/actor did do a good job of showing the pain and frustration of the disorder. There was one scene where Joe wanted to leave the room but couldn't because he had to keep turning the light switch on and off which really stayed with me.

I really hadn't followed any television series prior to Monk. When I started watching everything including the main character, Monk seemed a little quirky. But the series grew on me with time. I've watched every episode at least two or three times. While I never took the time to break down the OCD disorder to see if the Monk character truly fit the bill, actor Tony Shalhoub pulled off a convincing enough portrait of someone suffering from the disorder. Not to forget that he suffers from many other phobias and disorders, leaving him as a shell of a human being. He's a character seeings from the outside, not able to function as most in society, but at the same time has a sense of humor despite the many trials he faces. If anything the series is a lighthearted comedy and a reminder to be grateful for what we have and who we are despite our flaws.

I really do appreciate your article and the comparison to real OCD that you suffer from and are able to share with others. It's too bad the show is finished and that the writers and actors weren't able to use your experiences as a reference to add some more reality and comicality to Monk's portrayal of the OCD disorder.

Hi nick I really like your comment
I am also a fan of monk and i also have a bit of ocd. I found monk verry helpful when i am in socialist situations and i do strange things due to my ocd i am able to make a joke about it with my friends who also know and like monk. Monk has really helped lower the stigma attached with OCD. And it is verry sad that the writer is wasting his time writing a hateful article about people who try and help considering the atrocities that are going on around the world towards people with mental health illnesses.

"But muh realistic depiction of mental illness!" Dude, Monk never aimed for a realistic depiction of OCD. If that bothers you show much, wanna know what to do? Grab a camera and shoot such a TV series yourself. With modern technology, you really have no excuses. And you know what? I'll bet you too will get people writing articles about how your OCD portrayal is not realistic and/or insulting. Just stop shitting on well-regarded TV shows because they don't fit your pre-conceived notions of OCD portrayal. Do you think people who suffered a broken leg are sitting in front of the TV and, when someone suffering a broken leg is portrayed humurously, they go "I'm insulted! That's not what a broken leg is like at all! Off to psychologytoday I go!" Oh, and "Girls" is a piece of crap, I don't care how good they portray OCD, Lena Dunham ain't fit to lace Shalhoub's shoe. Oh, and she touched her sister. Could be the focus of your next article? Would piss your feminist readers off plenty though. Have a good one.

I personally love Monk. It's by far the favorite show in our house. That's partly because the characters and situations are hilarious, and it's partly because several in our family suffer from OCD, depression, and more. I can easily see how some who suffer from mental illnesses could resent a humorous depiction of it. But for me it resonates. (Without the humor aspect, watching Monk's struggles would be such a downer. I wouldn't watch it.)

It may not be accurate for all OCD sufferers--I don't care about germs, and I only have spurts with neatness, but I do have a special number, and I have a thing about touching things. And it may not be accurate for all depression sufferers either.

But it does show that mental illness aren't something you can just "get over." I personally don't take medication, because I'm afraid of social situations, which includes doctor visits. So no, I also don't see a therapist, so (disclaimer) I have never been clinically diagnosed with anything. And since I'm not taking meds or seeing a therapist, and I've never really had a traumatic experience, people seem to get the idea that depression is just you being a pessimist. It's not a real condition, it's just what people call themselves when they mean "sad." If you would just think positive and choose to be happy, abracadabra, no more hopelessness!

Same with fear of social situations, but I won't get into that because it doesn't relate so much to the show.

In Monk, he struggles all the time. Even before the trauma of Trudy's murder, in flash backs to middle school, he struggles. His brother Ambrose struggles. A lot of the show is humorous, but there are moments when it most definitely is not. I believe it's in the same episode you analyzed, where Adrian says, "I'm afraid of change. And I'm afraid of not changing. I'm afraid of change, and I'm afraid of not changing."

I don't know much about OCD (beyond reading a short book about it years ago), but I never thought Monk's weird grab-bag of symptoms could possibly be representative of anyone's actual disease. I found it irritating that his disease morphed into whatever would cause him the most difficulty in life.

Still, this didn't bother me much in the early years because the show was quite entertaining. But when the show went downhill in general, the grab-bag symptom thing got worse and worse, as when Monk inexplicably became hysterically blind for a few minutes.

That show was so great the first season, and so wretched by the end. But I never thought it represented OCD.